The Local Lit Scene

Thank you Penguin Books SA for sending me a copy of this book!

What is it about?

After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one. Now, it’s the dawn of the 5th wave. On a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth’s last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, until Cassie meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan may be her only hope for rescuing her brother and even saving herself. Now she must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.

Is it worth reading?

I have to admit to enjoying it so yes, read it! There were some moments in the book which were a bit annoying and too cliched but I enjoyed the story line. It is a novel about aliens taking over the world, (but luckily this cliche is more believable than most and does’t have your usual green, one eyed beings portrayed as aliens,in this story, you don’t know who the aliens are which makes it that much more scary and believable) and about trust, and in a world where you really don’t know who you can trust any more, the nature of friendship and what gets me every time, children. It always gets my soft spot when I read about children and how they have to grow up and loose their innocence before their time.

The only thing I didn’t really like about the book was the ending, but I think it is done in the way that is has been so there is a possibility for a sequel. Which is not necessarily a bad thing!

I liked the characters and I liked how that the fact that they were children is a vital part of the story. So, give it a go, and even if you don’t usually read these sorts of books, I think this is an easy and quick read and compelling enough to have you continue reading…

Have you read it? What did you think?

And if you have read it and enjoyed it and fancy more from him, here is his website, where I have discovered that he has many more books to read!

How very sad it is that there will no longer be Maeve Binchy novels to look forward too. The first I had ever read by her was ‘Light a Penny Candle’ and I absolutely adored the book. Her writing is beautiful and carries you through the lives of her characters which become as real as ‘real people’ while you are reading it. Pulled into her novels, swept away on their journeys. Solid and real. I loved it.

This book was no different on that account, the only problem I had with it, as I had with a few of her last novels, were that they were too short. Her first books were great bug hunks of  novels while her last ones, while lovely definitely didn’t have the same amount of depth and breadth to them. Saying that, I still loved them.

A week in Winter is a cast of characters who holiday in a new guest house set in Ireland and documents their stories as to why and how they got there. As with all her novels, these have happy endings and are feel good books, even though there is always sadness and heartache in them too.

If you are a Maeve Binchy fan, you will enjoy this book.

And now, I think I need to re-read Light a Penny Candle…

I am sure that most of you who know of Rosamund Kendal’s writing will be more familiar with ‘The Angina Monologues’ and ‘Karma Suture’ than with ‘The Murder of Norman Ware’ but let me dispel any misgivings you may have about her latest book.

Even though it is not medical based, it still very aptly describes South Africa today in its distinctions between classes and colors and rich and poor. This book details the murder of Norman Ware and the co-incidences and consequences of various key players within the frame of how and why it occurred. But, the murder of Norman Ware is really just the back drop for how our society works at large.

Read it, I don’t think you will be disappointed!

And if you have read it, what did You think??

Would you believe, I found this book at Bargain Books for a mere R70? I snatched it up, with no questions asked!

M.L. Steadman

 I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The writing was beautiful, I was captured by the very first page and there were jewels of sentences through out the whole book.

The characters were interesting, the premise was interesting and the topic perfect for book club discussions. You know the Jodi Piccoult types, where the lines between right and wrong are blurred, well this has one of those but not too such a degree like JP where you emotions are jangled by the end of the book. This was a lovelier read and though sad, and heartbreaking at times, it was gentler on the emotions.

What is it about?

“1926. Tom Sherbourne is a young lighthouse keeper on a remote island off Western Australia. The only inhabitants of Janus Rock, he and his wife Isabel live a quiet life, cocooned from the rest of the world. Then one April morning a boat washes ashore carrying a dead man and a crying infant – and the path of the couple’s lives hits an unthinkable crossroads.”

This is the story of bad decisions with good intentions, the consequences of our actions. Love and death and heart break and forgiveness. I was sobbing near the end as it just really  was heart wrenching.

For me, this was a four star read and if you are looking for something for book club, this should be it.

Have you read it? What did you think? Did you enjoy it as much as I did, or did you think it was a sappy read?

by Trevor Romain.

Thank you Penguin SA for my review copy of Random Kak. I read it in one sittting and thoroughly enjoyed it!

I had a good few chuckles while reading his memories as some are just so very classic and no one in the 2000’s would really have a clue as to what he is on about!

Some which would include:

‘using a rotary phone where you actually ‘dialed’ someone’s number

‘making scoubidous at school’

‘rewinding a tape with a pencil’

And those are just a few of the nostalgic memories that Trevor takes you down the lane of .

I have to admit that because I am an eighties baby some of the things he remembers are out of my time zone but just as funny and poignant as the rest.

I think this is a fabulous book to show your chidren who are growing up in a much more technical world than what us ‘oldies’ did and it brings back some very fond memories of ones childhood.

Funny how life has changed so drastically since the 70’s and 80’s! What it does bring to mind, reading this book, is that even though life has changed, memories are still important and living in South Africa is a unique experience, one that I wouldn’t change for the world.

Go and get yourself a copy now and give it a read, then read it to your children, and your grandchildren all while having a good chuckle!

And on a last note: who remembers “It’s not inside, it’s on top!”??

And now for a Q&A with the man himself, courtesy of Penguin Books SA:

The review you have all been waiting for!

So, before we get down to the nitty gritty part of this review, I have to first admit to not having read any of her other books. I tried Moxieland but could not get into it and abandoned it not very far in. So, it was with slight trepidation that I picked this one up to check it out. I read the back cover –

The girl who wouldn’t die.

Hunting a killer who shouldn’t exist.

(Those first two sentences already had me intrigued)

Chicago, 1931. Violent drifter Harper Curtis stumbles upon a house that hides a secret as shocking as his own twisted nature: it opens onto other times. Harper uses it to stalk his ‘shining girls’ across decades – and cut the fire out of them.

He’s the perfect killer. Unstoppable. Untraceable. Until one of his victims survives and turns the hunt around.

Chicago, 1992. Kirby Mazrachi’s determination to find the man who tried to kill her has taken over her life. The cops no longer return her calls. Her mother copes by writing morbid children’s books. Her only ally is Dan, the burnt-out ex-homicide reporter who covered her case.

As Kirby closes in on her would-be killer, what she finds is…impossible. Murders scattered across the decades along with evidence that makes no sense.

Meanwhile Harper is closing in on her too.

The premise of this book is what intrigued me. The idea of a time travel thriller was a unique and novel one. So, I started to read it in the bookshop. I always like to read a few pages before I buy a book (I’m sure I am not the only person to do this??) and Lauren Beukes writing gripped me from page one. Unlike her previous novels.

It was creepy and gripping and unputdownable. I was a bit concerned that I would not be able to read this book at night time ( I am not a fan of going to sleep with gruesome images in my head) but I didn’t have to worry. Yes, the murders were gruesome and completely unsympathetic to the victim but the writing was compelling. Saying that, I did manage to read most of this in a couple of days so didn’t have to contend with much night time reading…

This novel is weird, very well written, slightly macabre and rather disturbing. This violent man, Harper, stumbles on this house which draws on his inner nature to  kill woman for their ‘shine’.And through many decades through time travel via this very house. What I did find rather disappointing is that you never really find out  the ‘why’ of this . (I like to know the why of the weirdness, does that make sense?)

Kirby, the victim who survives her attack is  sarcastic(her coping mechanism for her trauma) and determined to track down her would be killer. I liked the portrayal of her and especially when Dan comes onto the scene. I enjoyed the sceptism of Dan as Kirby discovers the impossible, his growing feelings for Kirby and when is disbelief is suspended when they work together to catch Harper.

The ending was not sufficient for me, I was a tad disappointed but yet, I can also see the full circle effect and well, you will have to read it as I don’t want to give too much away, the creepiness of the ending.

Lauren Beukes has definitely entered the world of not just a South African author, if her other work has not put her on the world map already, this certainly will!

Read it if you dare….